Dolphins shoot a season best 58.8 percent from three

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - The Jacksonville men’s basketball team will now turn it’s attention to the A-Sun Conference after wrapping up the non-league portion of its schedule on Friday night with a 93-59 loss at No. 5 Indiana.  JU begins league play at home at Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena against Northern Kentucky on Dec. 31 and Libscomb on Jan. 2.

The Dolphins (5-8) led by 15 points and five three-pointers from Dylan Fritsch (Albuquerque, N.M.) showed no signs of intimidation from the opening tip.  Jacksonville forced the Hoosiers (12-1) into four misses and four turnovers on their first eight possessions of the game.  

The opening defensive stretch allowed the Dolphins to build up an early 8-3 behind three-pointers from Jarvis Haywood (Charlotte, N.C.) and Jeremy Bogus (Birmingham, Ala.).  Jacksonville stayed hot from beyond the arc throughout the night shooting the highest percentage from three against Indiana this season at 58.8 percent (10-17).  

The Hoosiers lead remained is single digits until the final minute of the first half when Jordan Hulls took over for IU. The 6’0” guard connected on three straight from three in a span of 23 seconds that enabled Indiana to open up a 15-point (48-33) lead at the break.  

In the second half, missed opportunities plagued the Dolphins as the Hoosiers pulled away.  

Battling National Player of the Year Candidate, Cody Zeller in the paint most of the night, Glenn Powell (Deerfield Beach, Fla.) matched a season high with a game best 12 rebounds.  Senior Russell Powell (Newnan, Ga.) added a season high seven assists.

Jacksonville at Indiana Post Game Quotes (December 28, 2012)

Jacksonville Head Coach Cliff Warren

On the team’s hot start:

“I thought we came out and played Jacksonville basketball. We were disruptive, we got some deflections, and we took a lot of charges because we knew they were going to drive. I thought we were very under control and were able to get a bunch of easy baskets by driving the ball at their big guys. I thought we were just really in tune to the scouting report.”

On the main difference between the first and second half:

“I’m sure Coach [Tom] Crean had some choice words for them at halftime and got them fired up. I think their guys came out with a little bit more energy than our guys. We started the game with energy, but they started the second half with more energy. I think the types of 3’s we were getting in the first half were different than the types of 3’s we were getting in the second half. I thought we shared the ball a lot in the first half, but I think the ball kind of got stuck with certain guys and we didn’t reverse the ball or share it as much in the second. They were making shots and they were pushing the ball up the floor, so it was more difficult to get shots. We turned it over and they took our turnovers and scored.”

On what the team can take away from this game:

“I think there were segments in there where we did things that we were supposed to do. At the beginning of the game, we took charges and caused some disruption and made some easy baskets. If we can continue to do that against Atlantic Sun opponents, I will feel very confident.”

On how the team played against Cody Zeller and Christian Watford inside: 

“I thought we played well early. We limited their touches and took some charges. Maybe they weren’t looking to throw the ball inside but then Hulls got going, so they just continued to go back to him.”